Saturday, March 17, 2007

Maybe I shouldn´t admit to this, but one of the very first DVDs I purchased was Steven Seagal´s "The Glimmer Man." Back in 1997, Seagal still had a semblance of a movie career and was still considered a bad-assed dude, even with the woeful "The Glimmer Man" showing Seagal as an overweight and far slower version of his former self. That was a foot or two down the slippery slope to the direct-to-video bin where Seagal now reigns supreme. Before the martial artist/environmentalist actor became more of a household joke, he was a big box office draw and films such as "Under Siege" were the reasons why. Of course, some consider "Under Siege" the final film of his box office drawing power, but it followed the entertaining films "Above the Law," "Hard to Kill," "Marked for Death" and "Out for Justice."

In "Under Siege," Steven Seagal is Casey Ryback, a cook for a United States Navy battleship. A big celebration is underway and Ryback was personally selected by the ships Admiral to prepare the big feast for the celebration. Entertainment arrives in the form of a rock and roll band with frontman William Stranix (Tommy Lee Jones). Stranix isn´t exactly a rock and roller and the ships Commanding Officer, Cmdr. Krill (Gary Busey) isn´t the man his crew believes him to be. The two have concocted a plan to seize control of the battleship and launch nuclear missiles from the deck of the massive vessel. They plan to launch one missile as a show of might and then auction off their services to the highest bidder. What they didn´t expect was that Ryback is an ex-Navy SEAL that is legendary for his capabilities and that Ryback is a one man force that can easily usurp Stranix, Krill and their sizable squad of terrorists. They also didn´t expect the incredibly sexy Erika Eleniak to pop out of a cake topless, thrill male audiences and then act as the naïve sidekick for the action hero Seagal.

The plot is pretty over the top in nature and "Under Siege" was the start of bigger and more expensive films for Seagal. As Ryback, Seagal was easily believable as a Navy SEAL and his moves were sharp and precise. Tommy Lee Jones was far less convincing as a worthy opponent with a knife, but Jones is the sort of actor where is presence is a benefit for any film, regardless of how poorly he was miscast. Gary Busey was the quintessential madman in the late Eighties and early Nineties and he was perfectly cast for his role as Krill. He was meant to be hated, he was meant to be despicable and Busey nails his role. Erika Eleniak was the popular Playmate of choice when she starred in "Under Siege." I´m certain that many teenage boys went to see Under Siege for the sole purpose of seeing the actress in motion. Being incredibly well built and gorgeous was all that was necessary for the Baywatch beauty.

Watching "Under Siege," it is easy to remember when Steven Seagal was believable as a complete action hero. He had a wooden charisma that was more personable than either Stallone or Schwarzenegger, had good looks and an ability to convincingly deliver a good one liner. "Under Siege" was a cookie-cutter action film from the early Nineties, but with Tommy Lee Jones, Gary Busey, Colm Meaney and the luscious Erika Eleniak, the film had a solid cast and the pure concept of somebody as big and imposing as Seagal being passed off for a harmless cook was priceless. It was the perfect device to pass the time until the fists and bullets started to fly. Once the film let everybody in on the joke that Seagal´s character was more than a cook (which everybody really knew from the time the decided to watch the film or stumbled across the opening logos), then the action began and the film moved along swiftly and surely.

Steven Seagal has become a guilty pleasure of mine since the days of "The Glimmer Man," "On Deadly Ground," and "Under Siege 2." The first "Under Siege" film was the turning point, but can be lumped in with his older and more classic action films. Down deep, I´m one of those people that hope Seagal can once again find a niche in Hollywood. However, with films such as "Once Upon a Time in the Hood" on his upcoming slate, that isn´t going to happen anytime soon. Maybe its time for the fifty six year old actor to realize that he should start to take roles in ensemble films, perhaps as a crime lord or something that may be against his personal beliefs, but return him to the attention of audiences. Seagal would make for an entertaining Army Colonel in a war movie, or as a grizzled old man who lives on a mountain and has a pet cougar. I may be grasping at straws, but "Under Siege" is a fun film that reminds me how once I looked forward to new Seagal films. After watching it, I´m hoping to once day get another.

Maybe I shouldn´t admit to this, but one of the very first DVDs I purchased was Steven Seagal´s "The Glimmer Man." Back in 1997, Seagal still had a semblance of a movie career and was still considered a bad-assed dude, even with the woeful "The Glimmer Man" showing Seagal as an overweight and far slower version of his former self. That was a foot or two down the slippery slope to the direct-to-video bin where Seagal now reigns supreme. Before the martial artist/environmentalist actor became more of a household joke, he was a big box office draw and films such as "Under Siege" were the reasons why. Of course, some consider "Under Siege" the final film of his box office drawing power, but it followed the entertaining films "Above the Law," "Hard to Kill," "Marked for Death" and "Out for Justice."

In "Under Siege," Steven Seagal is Casey Ryback, a cook for a United States Navy battleship. A big celebration is underway and Ryback was personally selected by the ships Admiral to prepare the big feast for the celebration. Entertainment arrives in the form of a rock and roll band with frontman William Stranix (Tommy Lee Jones). Stranix isn´t exactly a rock and roller and the ships Commanding Officer, Cmdr. Krill (Gary Busey) isn´t the man his crew believes him to be. The two have concocted a plan to seize control of the battleship and launch nuclear missiles from the deck of the massive vessel. They plan to launch one missile as a show of might and then auction off their services to the highest bidder. What they didn´t expect was that Ryback is an ex-Navy SEAL that is legendary for his capabilities and that Ryback is a one man force that can easily usurp Stranix, Krill and their sizable squad of terrorists. They also didn´t expect the incredibly sexy Erika Eleniak to pop out of a cake topless, thrill male audiences and then act as the naïve sidekick for the action hero Seagal.

The plot is pretty over the top in nature and "Under Siege" was the start of bigger and more expensive films for Seagal. As Ryback, Seagal was easily believable as a Navy SEAL and his moves were sharp and precise. Tommy Lee Jones was far less convincing as a worthy opponent with a knife, but Jones is the sort of actor where is presence is a benefit for any film, regardless of how poorly he was miscast. Gary Busey was the quintessential madman in the late Eighties and early Nineties and he was perfectly cast for his role as Krill. He was meant to be hated, he was meant to be despicable and Busey nails his role. Erika Eleniak was the popular Playmate of choice when she starred in "Under Siege." I´m certain that many teenage boys went to see Under Siege for the sole purpose of seeing the actress in motion. Being incredibly well built and gorgeous was all that was necessary for the Baywatch beauty.

Watching "Under Siege," it is easy to remember when Steven Seagal was believable as a complete action hero. He had a wooden charisma that was more personable than either Stallone or Schwarzenegger, had good looks and an ability to convincingly deliver a good one liner. "Under Siege" was a cookie-cutter action film from the early Nineties, but with Tommy Lee Jones, Gary Busey, Colm Meaney and the luscious Erika Eleniak, the film had a solid cast and the pure concept of somebody as big and imposing as Seagal being passed off for a harmless cook was priceless. It was the perfect device to pass the time until the fists and bullets started to fly. Once the film let everybody in on the joke that Seagal´s character was more than a cook (which everybody really knew from the time the decided to watch the film or stumbled across the opening logos), then the action began and the film moved along swiftly and surely.

Steven Seagal has become a guilty pleasure of mine since the days of "The Glimmer Man," "On Deadly Ground," and "Under Siege 2." The first "Under Siege" film was the turning point, but can be lumped in with his older and more classic action films. Down deep, I´m one of those people that hope Seagal can once again find a niche in Hollywood. However, with films such as "Once Upon a Time in the Hood" on his upcoming slate, that isn´t going to happen anytime soon. Maybe its time for the fifty six year old actor to realize that he should start to take roles in ensemble films, perhaps as a crime lord or something that may be against his personal beliefs, but return him to the attention of audiences. Seagal would make for an entertaining Army Colonel in a war movie, or as a grizzled old man who lives on a mountain and has a pet cougar. I may be grasping at straws, but "Under Siege" is a fun film that reminds me how once I looked forward to new Seagal films. After watching it, I´m hoping to once day get another.

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